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We have an AGM coming up. There are nine seats on the Committee, but likely there will be more than nine candidates. If this happens, is there a standard or legislated mechanism for counting the vote? Is it first-past the-post, preferential voting, Hare-Clark, what? I would have thought something simple, like ‘Person with the most votes gets a seat, person with next most votes gets a seat, etc.’ until all seats are filled. Can someone help?
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NSW. At the AGM the owners will determine how many committee members that they want then all names nominated will be placed on a board and the owners at the meeting will vote not more than the determined amount and can vote in less than the determined amount. When all the votes are counted the persons with the least votes do not become committee members.
@oldandtired said:
NSW. At the AGM the owners will determine how many committee members that they want then all names nominated will be placed on a board and the owners at the meeting will vote not more than the determined amount and can vote in less than the determined amount. When all the votes are counted the persons with the least votes do not become committee members.Hmmm. Interesting but not strictly legal. This is what the relevant section of the Strata Regulations says:
10 Ballot for strata committee(1) This clause applies to the election of a strata committee for a strata scheme comprising more than 2 lots.
(2) If a ballot for membership of the strata committee of an owners corporation is required, the person presiding at the meeting of the owners corporation must:
(a) announce to the meeting the name of each candidate, and
(b) provide each person present and entitled to vote at the meeting with a blank ballot paper for each vote the person is entitled to cast.(3) For a vote to be valid, a ballot paper must be signed by the voter and completed by the voter’s writing on it:
(a) the names of the candidates (without repeating a name) for whom the voter desires to vote, the number of names written being no more than the number determined by the owners corporation as the number of members of the strata committee, and
(b) the capacity in which the voter is exercising a right to vote, whether:
(i) as owner, first mortgagee or covenant chargee of a lot (identifying the lot), or
(ii) as a company nominee, or
(iii) by proxy, and(c) if the vote is being cast by proxy—the name and capacity of the person who gave the proxy.
(4) The completed ballot paper must be returned to the chairperson.
(5) Until all places for membership of the strata committee have been filled, the chairperson is to declare elected successively each candidate who has a greater number of votes than all other candidates who have not been elected.
(6) If only one place remains to be filled but there are 2 or more eligible candidates with an equal number of votes, the candidate to fill the place is to be decided by a show of hands of those present and entitled to vote.
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Splendid! Thank you, Jimmy. Does the Act have anything to say about independent scrutiny of the ballot papers?
You’ll find all references to voting procedures here in Schedule 1 of the Act and here in the Regulations. I believe the owners corp can vote to choose someone as a “returning officer” but otherwise the job falls to the chair and secretary and/or the strata manager.
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Just to clarify – as oldanedtired mentioned, the preliminary step is that the owners have to determine the number of members of the Strata Committee, then you do the elections etc.
So you can’t assume the number will be 9 until the owners vote on it.
Sorry, but to be contrary;
Refer to Strata Regulations – Election to Strata Committee 9 (2) & 9 (3)
States nominations before numbers
Otherwise if numbers are determined before nominations it restricts who gets on the SC.
This ploy is used by Strata Managers to control the number of members
Can the vote be taken as a poll vote? That is by units of entitlement instead of one vote per lot?
For example, where garage is a separate lot but worth less units of entitlement than apartment lot, in a building where there are fewer garages than there are apartments.
The Committee can be voted on by Poll.
STRATA SCHEMES MANAGEMENT ACT 2015 – SCHEDULE 1 14 Decisions at meetings
(3) Value of votes to apply for [Image Can Not Be Found] poll [Image Can Not Be Found] If a [Image Can Not Be Found] poll [Image Can Not Be Found] is demanded by a person present and entitled to vote on a motion or for the election of officers of the owners corporation or members of the strata committee at the meeting, the motion is to be decided according to the value of the votes cast for and against the motion and the value of a vote cast by a person entitled to vote in respect of a lot is equal to the unit entitlement of that lot. However, the value of the vote of an original owner is to be calculated in the same way as for a special resolution.
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